Curried Salmon Chowder

I found this recipe on Instagram of all places - recipe by Jennifer Smith - no relation. It's a keeper! ...Make sure you have some fresh french bread to help sop up the chowder. Quick and easy.  If you don't like salmon make it sans the salmon and have curried potato soup! I know it's silly to think I "lightened" the recipe by using evaporated milk instead of the heavy cream, and using only half the butter called for in the recipe when you think of the can of coconut milk it uses..hey anything helps right!? right?!

1 large onion, peeled and roughly chopped
4 Tbl butter, ( I only used 2 Tbl)
2 Tbl mild Thai curry paste ( she used 1 Tbl green, and 1 Tbl red, so I did too)
2/3 cup white wine
13 oz can coconut milk (or 13.66 oz as the can comes)
2 cups vegetable broth
1 cup heavy cream ( I used low fat evaporated milk)
2 potatoes, peeled and large diced
2  -8 oz atlantic salmon filets, skinned and cubed
sea salt, freshly cracked pepper
fresh Italian flat leaf parsley

 In a large dutch oven melt butter, add onion, sauté until just beginning to soften. Add the curry paste, sauté another minute then add the white wine, coconut milk, vegetable broth and heavy cream, bring to a boil then turn down to a simmer, add potatoes, simmer for about 15 minutes. Add salmon, cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Add sea salt & pepper to taste and fresh parsley.
* makes 4 good sized bowls

Killer Granola

Sprinkle some of the granola on top of greek yogurt, on top of ice cream, mixed with some milk, or eat by the handful. I like it on top of greek yogurt with fresh strawberries, or peaches

2 Tbl unsalted butter
pinch of salt
1 cup chopped walnuts
2 tsp honey
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup black sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 325F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small saucepan, melt the butter with the salt over low heat. Add the chopped nuts, increase the heat to medium, and cook, stirring frequently for 5 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Add the honey and brown sugar, reduce the heat to low, and stir until melted and combined. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla extract. In a large bowl, combine the oats, coconut, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds. Add the sugar mixture and toss until the oats are evenly coated. Spread the granola evenly on the prepared pan. Place in the oven on the middle rack and bake for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir to redistribute the granola. Bake for an additional 10 minutes, or until golden brown. Let cool completely on the baking sheet. Store the granola in an airtight container. Makes 3 cups.

*recipe from Tracy at shutterbean.com

Cranberry Avocado Salad with Candied Spiced Almonds

I didn't add the dressing for the salad in the picture, but it is very good. The dressing and the almonds make this salad

Sweet White BalsamicVinaigrette 

⅓ cup sugar

1 ½ tablespoons poppy seeds

1 ½ tablespoons sesame seeds

½ teaspoon paprika

2 teaspoons dried mustard

1 tablespoon minced sweet onion

½ teaspoon sea salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

½ cup white balsamic vinegar

⅓ cup vegetable oil 

⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil

Combine all ingredients for dressing in a jar and shake to dissolve the sugar

Salad

12 ounces baby spinach, arugula, field greens

1 small bunch cilantro, washed and dried, leaves removed whole from stems

2 medium avocados, peeled and halved

¾ cup dried cranberries

¾ cup candied spiced almonds *recipe in side bar to the right

Place greens and cilantro leaves in a large bowl. Add avocado and dried cranberries and about 1/4 cup of the dressing and toss gently. Scatter candied almonds over salad and sprinkle lightly with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Add more dressing if desired.

Candied Spiced Almonds

5 cups sliced almonds, or a 1 pound package

½ cup sugar

3 Tbl butter

2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp smoked paprika

1 tsp vanilla

sea salt

Place a large sheet of foil on a work surface. Spray with cooking spray or rub a little olive oil to prevent sticking.

Place sugar in a large non-stick sauté pan and heat over medium heat , occasionally tipping and swirling the sugar until it is all melted into a pale golden syrup. (Took about 5 minutes to melt.)

Lower heat immediately and add butter, cinnamon, smoked paprika and vanilla. Stir until well combined and all butter is incorporated into the sugar syrup.

Add the nuts and stir gently to coat. You have some clumps of caramelized sugar - they will melt as you continute to sauté the almonds. Cover and continue to cook on low, stirring every minute and a half, or so until almonds are a delicious golden brown. Watch very carefully as they can go from beautiful to burned very quickly! (took this batch about 10 minutes) Turn out onto prepared foil and sprinkle liberally with sea salt. Let cool. 

Roasted Peppers & Feta Salad

I found this recipe on the Whole Foods website. ( wish we had a whole foods here)

2 bell peppers, roasted and seeded,  and cut into 1 inch pieces ( I used red and yellow)
feta cheese (recipe calls for 1 pound) cut into cubes
1 cup pitted greek olives ( I used 1/2 cup)
1 small red onion, diced ( any sweet onion) ( I only used a 1/4 of a onion)
3 garlic cloves, minced ( I used 1 garlic clove -it was plenty)
2 Tbl olive oil
1 Tbl balsamic vinegar
2 tsp chopped fresh thyme ( I didn't have any I will use it next time)
lemon juice from 1/2 a lemon
fresh cracked pepper and sea salt

Gently toss everything together in a resealable bowl. Cover and chill at least 5 hours before serving.
*I added some lemon zest

Perfectly Moist Chicken w/ Roasted Broccoli

For the chicken:

brush boneless skinless chicken breasts with olive oil. Season as desired. ( I used Mrs. Dash "table blend", fresh cracked pepper, and a little ground cumin.) Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes. Let sit for 10 minutes then slice.

For the Roasted Broccoli:

1 head broccoli
3 tbl. extra virgin olive oil ( I used only 2 tbl)
1 tsp. kosher salt, or sea salt ( I didn't use any salt)
1/2 tsp sugar

carefully peel the outer peel from the broccoli stalks with a sharp paring knife the best you can. (be careful!)  Put your oven rack in its lowest position. Place a rimmed baking sheet INTO the oven WHILE the oven preheats to 500 degrees. Meanwhile; cut the stems into long 1/2 inch long pieces. (as you can see by the picture I had a broccoli head on hand, so I didn't have much stalk) cut the broccoli into long narrow florets. Put into a bowl and drizzle with the olive oil. Use your hands (your best cooking tool for mixing broccoli and olive oil - it's a given that your hands are clean at this point) to mix to coat. Sprinkle with sugar and salt and mix some more to distribute.  (the sugar helps to brown, and also gives it a slight sweetness) Your oven is probably 500 degrees by now. Open the door quickly ( oven not front) and remove the baking sheet. Now remember, the pan is very hot, so put it directly on top of the stove, or on hot plates, please don't forget the pan is HOT! ..carefully transfer the broccoli to the pan and spread in an even layer ( you will hear it sizzling - reminding you the pan is HOT!) laying the broccoli flat if it will let you. Using a POT HOLDER place the HOT pan back into the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes, or until well browned. Serve immediately.

****I've used this same roasting method with cauliflower - just as yummy!

Tuna Salad with Grilled Zucchini

 

I found this recipe while browsing around the internet at a blog called The Healthy Foodie. It's a keeper! Quick, easy, and so yummy. It serves one, so I doubled the ingredients, and put the other half in a container for lunch tomorrow. I packed my tuna and dressing separately.  It's a dress just before serving kind of salad, and I didn't want the tuna to make anything soggy.

2 cups mixed greens

1 large tomato, diced ( I like to seed mine, I learned that from Grandma Fisher)

1/4 cup parsley, chopped ( I used cilantro, because I love it)

1/4 cup fresh mint, chopped

10 kalamata olive, pitted

1 small zucchini, sliced lengthwise

1/2 avocado, diced

1 green onion, diced

1 can tuna, drained 

1 tbl. balsamic vinegar

1 tbl. extra virgin olive oil

sea salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste 

Grill the zucchini in a screaming hot grill pan or skillet sprayed with some olive oil spray - not too long, because you want it to still be a bit firm. Let cool for a few minutes and cut into bite size pieces.   Put everything in a big bowl and stir gently. (after all - the zucchini has been through a lot in that screaming hot pan earlier!) Serve immediately. 

*I didn't add salt, I felt it was great without it, because the kalamata olives add a nice touch of salt as is.  I also had some diced red pepper on hand, so I threw those in as well. 

Southwestern Chopped Salad topped with Grilled Chicken

1 head romaine lettuce, chopped
15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 red or orange bell pepper, chopped
1 pint cherry tomatoes, cut in halves, or chopped
2 cups corn, fresh or frozen (if frozen, thawed)
5 green onions, chopped

Mix all in a bowl and top with dressing of your choice. I use the creamy cilantro-lime dressing. (recipe in the side bar) I also topped it with some grilled chicken and sliced avocado for a complete meal.

**this makes a lot. About 4 main dish servings, or 6 to 8 side dish servings. So half or quarter the recipe to suit your needs. Its great left over for lunch - just don't dress it until serving time.

White Bean and Tuna Salad

You've worked all day - you don't feel like cooking, but you are hungry. You look in the pantry...you see a can of "good quality" oil-packed tuna. check. can of white beans. check. On the counter you see a lemon and fresh garlic. check. In the fridge you see fresh mint and green onions.check and check. You have all the ingredients to make White Bean and Tuna salad. In 5 minutes dinner will be done. boom.  If you have some whole wheat bread - toast it up in the toaster and butter it up! Put your white bean tuna salad on it. yum.

5oz can "good quality" tuna packed in oil, drained ( I use Trader Joes brand it is good!)
15 oz can white beans, rinsed and drained ( I used Organic Great Northern beans)
1/2 cup chopped green onions, OR red onion
juice and zest of 1/2 a lemon
1/4 cup fresh mint, OR parsley, chopped
1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes , more or less if you like or dislike heat
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper to taste

Mix all in a bowl. Let flavors meld in the refrigerator for 30 minutes or more for best flavor. Salt and pepper to taste. Keep tightly covered in the refrigerator. The best part is this will still be good after 2 days in the refrigerator. great for lunches.

how many times can I say refrigerator? .....also good in pita bread, or with crackers